Ancestors

The Military Order of the Stars & Bars has a wide range of programs at the national level that compliment the work of the State Societies and Local Chapters.

In fulfilling its mission as a historical, patriotic, and educational organization, the MOS&B recognizes and rewards those who communicate the true history of the War Between the States through printed media with various literary awards, rewards academic effort with annual scholarships, and engages in numerous historic preservation efforts.

| DOUGLAS SOUTHALL FREEMAN HISTORY AWARD | GENERAL BASIL W. DUKE AWARD | JOHN ESTEN COOKE FICTION AWARD | LT. DABNEY M. SCALES HIGH SCHOOL ESSAY CONTEST | Military Order of the Stars and Bars Scholarship Program | JACKSON MEDAL | Confederate Legacy Endowment Fund |

An annual cash grant of $1,000 to the author writing the best book on a Southern theme. The award was presented for the 28th year in 2010.

Previous Douglas SouthallFreeman History Award Winners

1985 - The Last Review by Virginias Dabney, Algonquin Books

1986 - Rebel Raider: The Life of General John Hunt Morgan by James A Ramage, University Press of Kentucky

1987 - The Man Who Tried To Burn New York by Nat Brandt, Syracuse University Press

1988 - Forts Henry and Donelson: The Key To The Confederate Heartland by B. F. Cooling, University of Tennessee Press

1989 - The Illustrated Confederate Reader by Rod Gragg, Harper & Row Publishers

1990 - Fighting For The Confederacy: The Personal Recollections Of General Edward Porter Alexander edited by Gary W. Gallagher, University of North Carolina Press

1991 - Stonewall Jackson at Cedar Mountain by Robert K, Krick, University of North Carolina Press

1992 - In Deadly Earnest: The History Of The First Missouri Brigade by Phil Gottschalk, Missouri River Press

1993 - The Confederacy's Fighting Chaplain: Father John B. Bannon by Phillip T. Tucker, University of Alabama Press

1994 - Encyclopedia Of The Confederacy edited by Richard N. Current, Simon & Schuster, Publishers

1995 - Andersonville: The Last Depot by William Marvel, University of North Carolina Press

1996 - Seasons Of War by Daniel E. Sutherland, Free Press

1997 - Stonewall Jackson: The Man, The Soldier, The Legend by James I. Robertson, Jr., Macmillan Publishing Co.

1998 - Richard S Ewell: A Soldier's Life by Donald C. Pfanz, University of North Carolina Press

1999 - Arkansas Confederates In The Western Theater by James Willis, Morningside Books

2000 - Taken At The Flood: Robert E. Lee & Confederate Strategy In The Maryland Campaign Of 1862 by Joseph L. Harsh, Kent State University Press

2001 - Last Chance for Victory: Robert E. Lee & the Gettysburg Campaign by Scott Bowden & Bill Ward, Savas Publishing Co.

2002 - Fredericksburgl Fredericksburg! by George C. Rable, University of North Carolina Press

2003 - Lee's Tar Heels: The Pettigrew-Kirkland-MacRae Brigade, by Earl J. Hess, University of North Carolina Press

2004 - Gentleman And Soldier: The Extraordinary Life of General Wade Hampton by Edward G Longacre, Rutledge Hill Press

2005 - Old Alleghany: The Life and Wars of General Ed Johnson by Gregg S. Clemmer, Hearthside Publishing

2006 - Wade Hampton: Confederate Warrior, Conservative Statesman by Brian Cisco, Potomac Books, Inc.

2007 - William Lowndes Yancey: The Coming of the Civil War by Eric H. Walther, University of North Carolina Press

2008 - Portraits of Conflict: A Photographic History of Tennessee in the Civil War - Richard B. McCaslin, University of Arkansas Press

2009 - Major General Robert E Rodes of the Army of Northern Virginia - Darrell L. Collins, Casemate Pub & Book Dist Llc

2010 - Civil War Arkansas, 1863
The Battle for a State - By Mark K. Christ

Civil War Arkansas, 1863
The Battle for a State
By Mark K. Christ

From the Publisher
An overlooked turning point in the trans-Mississippi theater

The Arkansas River Valley is one of the most fertile regions in the South. During the Civil War, the river also served as a vital artery for moving troops and supplies. In 1863 the battle to wrest control of the valley was, in effect, a battle for the state itself. In spite of its importance, however, this campaign is often overshadowed by the siege of Vicksburg. Now Mark K. Christ offers the first detailed military assessment of parallel events in Arkansas, describing their consequences for both Union and Confederate powers.

Christ analyzes the campaign from military and political perspectives to show how events in 1863 affected the war on a larger scale. His lively narrative incorporates eyewitness accounts to tell how new Union strategy in the Trans-Mississippi theater enabled the capture of Little Rock, taking the state out of Confederate control for the rest of the war. He draws on rarely used primary sources to describe key engagements at the tactical level—particularly the battles at Arkansas Post, Helena, and Pine Bluff, which cumulatively marked a major turning point in the Trans-Mississippi.

In addition to soldiers’ letters and diaries, Christ weaves civilian voices into the story—especially those of women who had to deal with their altered fortunes—and so fleshes out the human dimensions of the struggle. Extensively researched and compellingly told, Christ’s account demonstrates the war’s impact on Arkansas and fills a void in Civil War studies.

Mark K. Christ is Community Outreach Director for the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program, Department of Arkansas Heritage, Little Rock, and a member of the Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial Commission. He is the author or editor of several books on Arkansas history, including Rugged and Sublime: The Civil War in Arkansas and Getting Used to Being Shot At: The Spence Family Civil War Letters.

http://www.oupress.com/bookdetail_printer.asp?isbn=978-0-8061-4087-2

GENERAL BASIL W. DUKE AWARD

An annual award of $1,000. This award recognizes the publisher who reissues the best work in Confederate history.

Army Life
From a Soldier’s Journal
A. O. Marshall
Edited by Robert G. Schultz

The engaging account of a young Union soldier

In 1884, when Albert O. Marshall published Army Life, a memoir of his service as a private in the Thirty-Third Illinois Regiment, twenty years had passed since his 1864 discharge. Marshall left the journal untouched at publication, and today it is a journal that is rare in what it is not. This memoir is not a complete story of the Thirty-Third (known as the “Normal Regiment” because many of its soldiers were from Illinois State Normal University), nor is it a complete roster of regiment members, nor a list of killed and wounded.
Army Life is not, even, a purely military account written from an officer’s point of view. It is the story of a twenty-year-old private whose engaging writing belies his age but also allows his youth to shine through. Marshall tells of the battles he fought and the games he played, of his friends, fellow soldiers, and officers, and of the regiment’s activities in Missouri and Arkansas, at Vicksburg, and in Louisiana and on the Texas Gulf Coast. Enhanced with careful editing and thorough annotations, this journal Marshall carried faithfully to every mustering out is a rich and important Civil War memoir.

Albert O. Marshall was born in 1840 on a farm in Illinois. He served in the Thirty-Third Illinois Regiment for three years, after which he became a lawyer and was elected to a four-year term in the state senate and later to the county court as a circuit court judge.

Robert G. Schultz teaches at East Central College in Union, Missouri, and has published numerous articles on local and regional history and postal history.

http://www.uapress.com/titles/fa09/schultz.html

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JOHN ESTEN COOKE FICTION AWARD

Based on the author's family history, Call To Glory, The Life & Times of a Texas Ranger traces the saga of the Wiley brothers, three fiercely proud Texans whose destinies ran through the most tumultuous times in American history. From joining ranks with fellow Texans in the Civil War to donning the silver badge of the Ranger to protect a still deadly frontier, Call To Glory, The Life & Times of a Texas Ranger recounts a gripping story of justice, romance and honor.

This is the story of three brothers from Texas, their experiences during the Civil War and the hardship and tragedies they endured in the aftermath of the war -- problems that did not go away with the surrender at Appomattox. This is also a story of the commitment and sacrifices of the women in their lives. Women who shared the trials of war while waiting for the men they loved to return -- fair and tender ladies who prove as tough as the Texas frontier.

Fresh from a war with Mexico, having won their independence and gained statehood, Texans developed a strong sense of pride. Infused with the blood and honor of Jim Bowie, Davy Crockett and Sam Houston -- Texans became tough, hell bent for leather men with a strong sense of justice. They founded the Texas Rangers to bring law and order to the Texas frontier.. Leroy Wiley was such a man.

http://calltoglory.info/glory/synopsis.html

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LT. DABNEY M. SCALES HIGH SCHOOL ESSAY CONTEST

An annual essay contest for high school juniors and seniors who write on a specified Southern theme.

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Military Order of the Stars and Bars Scholarship Program

The MOS&B Scholarship Program annually recognizes and awards merit based scholarships to worthy individuals who meet eligibility requirements and have been judged on information submitted by the applicant.

Applicant Letter

Scholarship Application Information Sheet

Scholarship Application Form

JACKSON MEDAL

If you elect to accept this challenge you do so with two thoughts in mind: It should be for a two year commitment and your efforts should be towards perfection.

Not everyone will wear the Jackson Medal, but those who do will have done their best . . . .

[details and application]

Confederate Legacy Endowment Fund

Through the Confederate Legacy Endowment Fund, the Military Order of the Stars and Bars is undertaking to restore and rebuild Southern memorials and monuments. . . .

The MOS&B has formed the Confederate Legacy Endowment Fund to fight the battle against "political correctness" and apathy. [details]

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